Happy New Year, and congratulations to all of you who won a fantasy football championship! And an even bigger thank you from me to you for sticking around and diving for players on waivers to make those title runs.
Each season, players come from the waiver wire to become a piece of a championship roster. Often, those players will not be on waivers the following season, and that’s what I will be looking at over the next few weeks in this mini-series.
These are players that you were most fortunate to grab off the waiver wire in 2023, but you’ll have to pay up for on draft day in 2024.
Top 2023 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Additions & 2024 Outlooks
C.J. Stroud (QB, Houston Texans)
Aside from the fact he wasn’t in a Carolina Panthers uniform, I had a blast watching C.J. Stroud this season, and I’m sure many of you did as well. Among quarterbacks with at least seven games started in 2023, Stroud is tied for 10th in fantasy points per game (18.6) with Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert.
Even with that, Stroud has room to grow in this offense; he has a pretty league-average 4.4% touchdown rate. While I’m not in the business of projecting historic or outlier seasons, some numbers suggest Stroud has that potential. He’s second in air yards per attempt and sixth in deep ball completion percentage and deep ball catchable pass rate. Stroud is not only slinging it deep, but he’s doing so accurately. Even though he’s played in just 14 games, Stroud still has a chance in Week 18 to become only the fifth rookie QB in NFL history to throw for 4,000 yards.
He passes every eyeball test and, along with head coach DeMeco Ryans, has changed the trajectory of the Houston Texans’ franchise. While you won’t be able to grab him off waivers in 2024, Stroud will still likely go behind many big names, making him a great late-round QB candidate.
Kyren Williams (RB, Los Angeles Rams)
League winner. That’s the first thing I think of when I see Rams running back Kyren Williams. That’s wild, considering it looked like he would play a complementary role to Cam Akers coming into the 2023 season. The TL;DR version is that Akers was traded away, and Williams looked like vintage Todd Gurley for most of the season.
Williams is second only to 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey in Points Per Reception (PPR) fantasy points per game. With over 1,300 total yards and 15 total touchdowns in only 12 games played, Williams has been a revelation for fantasy managers who scoured the waiver wire in 2023 and the Rams.
The one thing I have learned about fantasy football in all my years of playing is that the RB position is incredibly volatile.
The good news is that Rams head coach Sean McVay seemed to love Williams, giving him every opportunity. The second-year back was fifth in opportunity share amongst RBs in 2023. The (potential) bad news is that the Rams finally have draft picks again, 10 of them in 2024, to be exact. While I don’t expect Los Angeles to utilize a high pick on a running back, they will likely add someone to their backfield for security behind Williams.
Ultimately, as long as Williams survives the offseason without the Rams adding a major backfield threat, he’ll be locked and loaded as an RB1 candidate for 2024.
Puka Nacua (WR, Los Angeles Rams)
Another equally impressive Rams player makes the list, and this one may require even more capital on draft day. Wide receiver Puka Nacua went from a fifth-round 2023 NFL Draft pick to waiver wire darling and a household name in a single season. Unbelievable.
As of Week 17, Nacua is a top-five fantasy wide receiver. He amassed 1,445 yards on 154 targets (nearly a 30% target share in the Rams’ offense) and scored five times, putting him at seventh in PPR points per game. This is basically what you hoped for when drafting Julio Jones back in the day.
The drumbeat for Nacua was consistent throughout training camp and came to fruition the moment he stepped onto the field. There was concern about his role once teammate Cooper Kupp returned to the field from injury. But those concerns were quickly alleviated. Through 16 weeks, Nacua was fourth in target rate among all WRs, fifth in yards per route run, sixth in EPA and sixth in juke rate per. Nacua is a baller, and he’s here to stay. There’s a real chance he demands early second-round draft capital in 2024.
Trey McBride (TE, Arizona Cardinals)
There were very few bright spots for the Arizona Cardinals in 2023. However, second-year tight end Trey McBride is one of them. He is also among the wave of tremendous talent being infused into the position. His season was a tale of two halves; the first while Zach Ertz was still on the team, and the second was after Ertz was released.
Ultimately, even while playing with three different quarterbacks this season, McBride earned 100 targets, collecting 78 of those for 791 yards and two scores. Depending on Week 18 outcomes, the Cardinals’ draft position could be a factor in the future of QB Kyler Murray. Murray has been subject to much speculation throughout much of the 2023 season, although he would provide the best outlook for McBride in 2024.
Regardless of the Cardinals’ signal caller, McBride should remain a top target in the offense. He was first in target rate through 16 weeks among all TEs. Being a top option in an offense is often the difference between being a star tight end for fantasy football and Just a Guy (JAG) on the waiver wire. McBride has the opportunity to be a star in 2024.
Thanks for reading my favorite fantasy football waiver wire additions from 2023 and their outlooks for 2024. Looking for more fantasy football advice? Follow me on Twitter @ThatMattKelley.
*Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez – USA TODAY Sports*
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[…] In part one of this mini-series, I looked at some 2023 waiver wire heroes who will be draft day targets in 2024. This week, I’m featuring players who had flashes throughout the season and could see their hype train grow throughout the offseason. […]
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